Level: B2 / Upper Intermediate
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Standard Lesson 60 min
Stay interested, stay motivated – first lesson with new students
GeneralThis ESL worksheet can be used in the first lesson with new students. In the lesson, students discuss their interests, watch a video about motivation, and do vocabulary and grammar tasks.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Non-native speakers or lifelong learners?
GeneralIn this lesson students discuss the accuracy of different terms referring to non-native English speakers, do a word-formation activity and talk about the article they read at home.
Standard Lesson 60 min
What makes a great corporate culture?
Business GrammarIn this lesson, students watch a video and use functional language (cleft sentences) to talk about corporate culture. They also learn some vocabulary related to the topic.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Understanding professional motivations
BusinessIn this lesson students talk about different types of workers described in the article, discuss some questions about motivations, and learn vocabulary to explain what motivates them at work.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Who wants to live forever?
TechnologyWith this lesson plan, students have an in-depth discussion about the idea of recreating dead people as avatars. They also practise useful vocabulary and talk about the metaverse.
Standard Lesson 60 min
Put a ring on it
GeneralIn this worksheet, students learn idioms and phrasal verbs with put. They also practise working out the meaning from context, and have an opportunity to use the new language in speaking activities.
Standard Lesson 75 min
There are only two things certain in life…
Business GeneralWith this upper-intermediate lesson plan students discuss the welfare state, watch a video about taxes in Sweden, and learn some useful vocabulary.
Flipped Lesson 60 min
Learning about the past for the present
General GrammarWith this lesson plan, students discuss why we need to learn history and other school subjects. They also watch a video and practise the use of conjunctions.
Standard Lesson 75 min
Elegance versus bling (case study)
BusinessIn this lesson, students watch a video about a company facing problems, learn advanced phrases for giving opinions, and discuss case studies.
Standard Lesson 60 min
‘I owe you one!’ and other informal expressions
GeneralIn this lesson, students learn some informal expressions in English which are used instead of common phrases like ‘I understand’. They also watch two sets of short video clips, and practise using the new language.
Standard Lesson 60 min
Our new friends and teachers
TechnologyIn this ESL lesson, students practise talking about technology. They also watch two videos about a robot companion for kids, learn vocabulary related to the topic, and write short comments about the video.
Standard Lesson 60 min
Visiting the art capital
LifestyleThis lesson plan is all about New York. Students will discuss some quotes about New York, watch a video about art in this city and learn adjectives to describe art.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Location-based pay – a thing of the past?
BusinessIn this lesson students learn some useful vocabulary to talk about salaries, discuss if location-based pay should become a thing of the past, and share their views on pay transparency and salary bands.
Standard Lesson 60 min
There is a lot of work behind the scenes
LifestyleIn this lesson students talk about occupational stereotypes, learn phrases for saying something is not true, and watch a video about being an artist.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Is it easy to be kind?
GeneralIn this lesson students talk about how acts of kindness are perceived nowadays, practise some useful phrases used in the article they read at home, and discuss how kind they would be in different situations.
Standard Lesson 75 min
It’s so hot right now!
Business TechnologyIn this lesson students learn expressions to talk about trends and watch a video about one of new buzzwords, i.e. NFTs.
Flipped Lesson 60 min
Are we running out of things?
BusinessIn this lesson about supply chain management, students learn vocabulary related to supply and demand, watch a video about just-in-case and just-in-time systems, and discuss the two systems in depth.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Are we becoming less materialistic?
Global Issues LifestyleIn this lesson, students talk about materialism and how the pandemic influenced our view of material gains, and do a transformation task.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Can stay interviews keep employees from leaving?
BusinessIn this lesson, students discuss the idea of stay interviews in depth and learn phrases which are useful to talk about employer-employee relationship.
Standard Lesson 60 min
Unconventional business model
BusinessIn this lesson, students learn about furniture retailer IKEA and discuss its business model. Then, they come up with their own business idea for a shop.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Curious questions about curiosity
GeneralIn this lesson, students discuss the topic of curiosity in humans, practise collocations from the article, and reflect on how curiosity has shaped their lives.
Standard Lesson 60 min
Chasing the birds away (phrasal verbs with away)
GeneralIn this lesson students learn and practise phrasal verbs with away, watch a video about a dog working at an airport and discuss the jobs dogs do.
Standard Lesson 60 min
Presentation: putting skills into action
BusinessWith this lesson plan, students practise giving a presentation in English by doing a lot of different speaking activities. The lesson is the third of the three-part series of lessons about delivering presentations.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Our lives rely on social media more than we think
Lifestyle TechnologyThis lesson plan is based on an article about a social media outage which students read at home. In the lesson, students learn some useful vocabulary and discuss possible consequences of all social media ceasing to exist.
Standard Lesson 60 min
Rethinking your mindset
Business LifestyleWith this speaking lesson plan, students watch a video about growth and fixed mindsets and get plenty of opportunities to discuss them. They also learn some collocations referring to challenges and development, as well as practise word formation.
Standard Lesson 75 min
Moving through your presentation
BusinessWith this lesson plan, students learn plenty of useful phrases for presentations in English. They also prepare presentation excerpts, and learn how to start a presentation. The lesson is the second of the three-part series of lessons about delivering presentations.
Standard Lesson 60 min
How to nail that presentation
BusinessIn this lesson about business presentations in English, students discuss presentation structures in depth, watch a video with tips on giving presentations, and learn useful words and phrases related to the topic. The lesson is the first of the three-part series of lessons about delivering presentations.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
To shuffle or not to shuffle?
LifestyleIn this lesson students discuss the article they read at home about Adele’s request to remove the shuffle button on her album. They also study collocations with the words album and track.
Standard Lesson 60 min
I wish I could but I don’t want to
GeneralIn this lesson students watch a video about strategies for saying ‘no’ in English and discover some useful phrases to say ‘no’ politely. They also put them into practice through a role-play.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
Why eating locally is not enough
Global IssuesIn this worksheet students practise some language related to food’s carbon footprint. They also discuss their food choices and the factors that influence them.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
The gig economy: good or bad for workers?
BusinessThis lesson plan gives students the opportunity to learn and practise words related to freelance work and discuss pros and cons of the gig economy.
Standard Lesson 45 min
Can you figure it out? ESL vocabulary puzzles
BusinessThis is a set of ESL vocabulary puzzles rather than a typical ESL Brains lesson plan. Each of the puzzles can be used separately as a time filler, a warm-up, etc.
Standard Lesson 75 min
The right to rest and other employment laws
BusinessIn this lesson students learn vocabulary related to the topic of employment law, watch a video about a new law passed in Portugal and share their views on employment regulations around the world.
Critical Reading Club 30 min
How much control should the state have over children’s upbringing?
Global Issues LifestyleIn this lesson students engage in a discussion on the control the state should have over children’s upbringing and discover some vocabulary related to the topic.
Standard Lesson 75 min
I’m afraid that’s outside the scope of this meeting
BusinessIn this lesson, students reflect on ways to make a business meeting more productive and practise some useful phrases for business meetings. They also act out typical workplace situations.
Standard Lesson 60 min
The circular economy
BusinessIn this lesson, students discover pros and cons of the linear and circular economy and learn some new vocabulary and collocations related to the topic. They also work on a case study and come up with strategies to transform a company following a linear model into a more circular one.
